ABSTRACT

With a focus on the growing number of institutions employing commercial agents to support international student recruitment, Student Recruitment Agents in International Higher Education provides an evidence-based exploration of this phenomenon, and will increase the reader’s understanding of the multiple dimensions of agent engagement, its contradictions and complexities.

This book explores who and what these education agents are, what students and higher education institutions can expect from a good agent, how bad agents can be identified and avoided, and what we learn from the reasons for the development of these agents in the first place. Offering theoretical perspectives with practical applications, this volume features contributions from academics and scholar-practitioners, laying out fresh perspectives and insights on topics such as process transparency, developing agent policy and procedures, and government regulations.

Providing the ideal reference for students embarking on international study, agents, higher educational institutions, government/accreditation agencies, researchers, and practitioners, this insightful book acts as a critical basis for further research and improvements in higher education practice.

part I|37 pages

Setting the Scene

chapter 1|20 pages

Education Agents: Key Issues, Themes, and Stakeholders

ByPii-Tuulia Nikula, Vincenzo Raimo

chapter 3|9 pages

The Risky Terrain of Outsourcing Recruitment: Ethics Versus Expediency

ByLiz Reisberg, Philip G. Altbach

part III|38 pages

Agents' Value Propositions and Impact

chapter 7|10 pages

Agents and Test Preparation: The Quest for High Scores on Standardized Tests

ByMeng Xiao, Linda Serra Hagedorn

chapter 8|11 pages

International Education Agents: Lessons from the History of IDP

ByDenis Blight

chapter 9|15 pages

Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Toward a Student-centred Value Proposition for Agents

ByJeanine Gregersen-Hermans, Karin Klitgaard Møller

part IV|42 pages

Agent Management and Views of Higher Education Institutions

chapter 10|13 pages

Agent Management Best Practices

ByPii-Tuulia Nikula, Eddie West

chapter 11|16 pages

Building an Effective Agent Engagement Strategy to Empower Strategic Growth in New Zealand

ByBrett Berquist, Marcelo Credidio

part V|35 pages

Student Views

part VI|55 pages

Government and Regulator Perspectives and Country Studies

chapter 15|11 pages

Exploring the Reasons for the Development of India's Education Agent System

ByRaghvendra Singh, Dylan Rust

chapter 17|8 pages

Education New Zealand's Agent Engagement Programme: Building a More Sustainable International Education Sector

ByGeneviève Rousseau Cung, Ana Azevedo, Sebastian Klinkum

chapter 18|8 pages

Client–Agent Dispute Cases

ByJon Santangelo

chapter 19|16 pages

Conclusions, Emerging Trends, and Future Directions for Education Agents and their Stakeholders

ByVincenzo Raimo, Pii-Tuulia Nikula, Eddie West